In chapter two of Ryan Cooper's textbook, Those Who Can Teach, he lists eight characteristics of an effective school: "[1] high expectations for student performance students, [2] communication between teachers, [3] task orientation among staff, [4] ability to keep students on task, [5] limited time spent on behavior management , [6] the educational leadership of the principal, [7] the participation of parents, and [8] the school environment” (51). Although the above eight characteristics contribute greatly to the overall success of a school, certain characteristics have a greater capacity to affect the success of a given school. Educators Wong and Wong point out that research consistently indicates that effective teachers exhibit three characteristics: 1) they are good classroom managers, 2) they teach to learn and master, and 3) they have positive expectations (8-10 ). Because I believe that the foundation of school effectiveness rests with teachers, I consider characteristics focused on effective teacher-student interaction to be the most important. Taken from the list above, these characteristics are (1) teachers who demonstrate high expectations for student performance, (3) a task orientation among the teaching staff, and (4) the ability to maintain students focused on their task. A teacher's effect on students is important because teachers have a greater influence on student achievement than a school. Robert Marzano's study separating the effect of the school on student success from the effect of the teacher on student success supports this notion. Marzano found that an ineffective teacher in an effective school environment has little or no effect on student achievement. On the contrary, an effective teacher in an ineffective school environment has been shown to have a... middle of paper ......aff, like paraprofessionals, counselors, librarians, specialists, and even janitors, comes to knowing and caring about the strengths and weaknesses of students as well as teachers and administrators. More importantly, they help provide solutions to overcome low student achievement. Motivated support staff also contribute to the overall success of a school. In summary, I believe that an effective teacher has the most influence on an effective school. For this reason, I consider Cooper's characteristics focused on effective teaching to be the most important. I also believe that promoting effective teaching skills through effective professional development programs is essential to creating an effective school. Additionally, I would not overlook the role of non-teachers in a school setting, as they also contribute to the overall effectiveness of a school..